To reduce Commercial Motor Vehicle ( CMV ) driver fatigue, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration ( FMCSA ) on July 1 put new rules into effect. In one portion of the new rules mandatory 30 minute break periods are required after 8 hours.
In a case brought to the U.S. Court of Appeals, all of the new FMCSA rules that went into effect on July 1 were upheld with one small exception. The new rules called for the mandatory 30-minute breaks for all drivers. The Court ruled that the 30 minute break was not necessary for short haul drivers (drivers who haul within 150 miles of their dispatch base). Both the American Trucking Association (ATA) and FMCSA stated that they were happy with the result. But the spokesperson for the ATA vowed that more lawsuits would be forthcoming.
